396. Intentional Self-Care With Zach Lloyd

Have you ever wondered how a journey from addiction to redemption could transform every aspect of your life? Zach Lloyd, a sustainable anti-diet coach, shares his powerful testimony of overcoming drug abuse and finding redemption through faith on this episode of "The Lion Within Us." Get ready to be inspired by Zach's personal anecdotes, including his love for snowboarding and the challenges of growing up in Indiana. He provides actionable advice on balancing physical and mental health, all while keeping Christ at the center of your well-being.

For full show note details, go to the episode webpage:
https://thelionwithin.us/podcast/396-intentional-self-care-with-zach-lloyd/

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Transcript

Chris Grainger: 1:46

Welcome to the Lion Within Us, a podcast serving Christian men who are hungry to be the leaders God intends you to be. I'm your host, chris Granger. Let's jump in. All right, guys, it's your meat episode time, so let's get right into it. Our scripture of the week this week is in the book of 1 Corinthians, chapter 10, just looking at one verse, verse 31. It says so whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God, guys. That's what it's all about. So this week, you know, go check out the spiritual kickoff episode.

Chris Grainger: 2:13

Unpack that at length to give you some insight on how you can apply that to your life, because we're going to be really talking about health. This is a pillar lying within us. We've got to make sure we're taking care of our minds and our bodies, and today we're going to focus a little bit more on the bodies. But it all ties together and I brought in a gentleman I met. His name is Zach Lloyd. He is incredible. I just had a fun time working with Zach. He's a sustainable, anti-diet coach, so get some of that.

Chris Grainger: 2:37

Fellas. You don't like diets. You want something that's going to be sustainable. This is the guy to talk to. Okay, all the credit to God for God's grace, for the way God has loved him through so many things. He loves basketball, he loves heavyweights and look, he almost lost his life to drug abuse and guys. He doesn't hold anything back here. He really leans into it. He shares with his story of redemption, of how God saved him, how he pulled him up out of the ashes and now how he's helping people all over, lean in, take care of their bodies, build better mindsets and just do what God's called them to do.

Chris Grainger: 3:16

So he's been coaching for a little over a decade now and he's building skill sets in every area associated with physical and mental fitness. So talk about aligning perfectly for a lion. This is great. So he's such a driven guy. He's so just on fire to help others, to encourage others. He's married. He's got two little ones at home. He's got a four-year-old and a two-year-old. So he's a busy guy as well. He's from the great state of Indiana. That's where he lives right now.

Chris Grainger: 3:40

And, guys, this is just a good conversation. There's some practical tips here you're going to want to think about, consider and look towards the end when you're hearing some of the things that Zach's talking about. If you want support, if you need help, if you need encouragement, reach out to him, okay. Check out that free resource that he's going to give you at the end as well. That's going to really give you some insight to how you can stop counting those doggone calories and start really focusing on the things that matter, okay, so enjoy this conversation with Zach Lloyd. Zach, welcome to the Lion Within Us. How are you doing today, man?

Zach Lloyd: 4:14

Fantastic Thanks for having me.

Chris Grainger: 4:16

Chris, oh, excited to have you on, so excited, just looking forward to this one. When we met, your energy was just through the roof. I'm like, yeah, this is going to be a good guy to have on the show, so so looking forward to it. Man, before we get into anything, tell us something fun about you that maybe not many people know about.

Zach Lloyd: 4:32

Yeah, you know what? I'm living in Indiana right now cornfields and everything, and so, like one of the big things that people don't really know about me is I grew up snowboarding a lot on a mountain and it's just. I'm from the Pacific Northwest, so kind of portland oregon area, and I just snowboarding is one of my favorite things anything on a mountain, honestly. But uh, that's probably one thing that's not as well known about me as other things are I hear it.

Chris Grainger: 5:00

Yeah, it's probably hard to hit some. Uh find some snow with some good mountains there in Indiana.

Zach Lloyd: 5:05

Yeah, we're not going to hit the cornfields, I guess.

Chris Grainger: 5:10

I hear you, buddy. Well, give us a little bit of your testimony. Let the listeners get to know who you are and what we're going to be talking about today. So just, I'm going to give you the floor here.

Zach Lloyd: 5:19

Yeah, I mean I'll kind of go long story short and then you can elaborate. But essentially you know my my you know story of my walk with with God over the years, ever since I was, you know, a young boy, was basically this warped worldview of wrapping my identity up in all sorts of different things and it was never, never Christ. And then when I finally figured that out, that that changed everything for me. But that's kind of how I ended up doing what I do now coaching health and fitness, personal training. I thought I was gonna be a physical therapist for a while, but long story short, kind of staying in that health and wellness area, and now I coach people as a anti-diet coach, a sustainable anti-diet coach.

Zach Lloyd: 6:07

But overall, like you know, I was bullied in middle school and high school high school, pretty bad and that definitely shaped a lot of my decisions for probably the next decade out of you know, kind of that middle school and high school time and that just really affected me in many ways. I didn't understand at the time and so it just led me down these different roads of trying to trying to find value and like really trying to find out what my self-worth was, and for the longest time I just didn't have any self-worth and I really just didn't think much of myself. And when you don't think much of yourself, I mean you just make terrible decisions over time and you know high school, you go into that. But my first serious girlfriend and I we had, you know, the big stereotypical breakup. But for me it wasn't like, oh, like I'm losing this girlfriend. It was in the back of my mind as well. About time she dumped me because I had just been treating her terribly. I was just a just a terrible, you know boyfriend and just a poor excuse for you know, whatever becoming a man is in high school looks like Right, and ultimately what that was for me was that was like that huge signal that I kind of last lost that sense of control that I had over somebody else, um, and just basically, uh, that sent me into this dark spiral of, well, what do I have anymore, like what is in my life that I have? And I didn't have anything. So I ended up finding myself in my RX-7 at the time and just pounding Keystone Tallboys.

Zach Lloyd: 7:53

I had an 18 rack in the back of my car and at the time I was dealing drugs and I had a Glock 45 underneath the car seat and my next directive was you know what? There's nothing left for me. My life has not turned out how I thought it was going to, and what's the point? What's the point of any of this? And ultimately, as I had the gun in my lap and I was about eight beers down tall boys losing myself, and I was getting to that point I had a phone call and my phone was off in the passenger seat and I could just see it out of the corner of my eye and there was. There was nobody I was going to answer that phone for or even care about at that time, except the one person that I would answer for would be my sister.

Zach Lloyd: 8:43

My older sister had always been the straight shooter in my life and basically, you know, told me about all of the things that she was. She messed up on early in life and nobody had really done that. I never had an adult in my life do that. They said, hey, like I've messed up too, I made bad mistakes, right, you're going to make bad mistakes and that's okay. She was that one person in my life that really did that for me, and so when she called, it was more of out of a reaction of like you know, I just got to be there for my sister, if I can out of any, you know I, you know just that was it Right, it wasn't.

Zach Lloyd: 9:17

It just totally switched my thinking off of myself, which in retrospect I find very fascinating. So I ended up answering the phone call and she had no idea what she was interrupting me and doing. Right and long story short, that conversation was enough to just change everything and I didn't even tell her what I was doing at the time. I ended up telling her I think it was a couple of years later, but she was concerned because she found out my girlfriend broke up with me and so it was just one of those um, god moments. At the time I didn't realize it was a God moment. It I found that out later, obviously. But God just slowly putting his hand on on my you know shoulder and said, hey, like there's more to this than you know sure.

Chris Grainger: 9:59

Sure I mean. So I'm just to clarify too the bullying things that you experienced growing up what I mean of stuff. Because you're you're a handsome guy, look like you're pretty much in shape. So I mean what yeah, what could? You be bullied about.

Zach Lloyd: 10:14

Yeah, and that's that's kind of what's the like. I say the, um, the, the. The thread that's kind of been through my life, uh, ever since then, is the fact that if, if you turn me sideways in middle school and high school, like I would have disappeared. I was tall, skinny, lanky, whatever people want to call it. Those words really bothered me at the time. Right, right, and I was in. I was always in athletics, but I was never like a great player. I was always just like, maybe a little above average at best, and I like playing sports.

Zach Lloyd: 10:50

But what happened was in middle school and high school I made a switch over from the middle school I went to a private high school and I some of some of my friends at the time, you know went with me. But I really didn't have any good, solid friends going with me except my best friend. And what happened was he joined the football team and my parents wouldn't let me join the football team for two years because they wanted me to focus on private school academics and do really well. And in retrospect that was a huge mistake, because what happened was my best friend, basically at school, became one of the football guys and I wasn't a football guy yet and so he kind of intermingled with them and then I became an outcast, and you know whether he meant to or not, ultimately it was hey, we're not really friends at school, but like when we go back home because we live close to each other, like then we can be friends again and I couldn't even mentally process any of that.

Zach Lloyd: 11:48

You know what I mean and that was a huge piece of it and then I kind of became the tag-along kid with the football team, even though I wasn't on the football team, and that never went well. So that's kind of what it was and ultimately it was, you know, there wasn't a lot of I wouldn't say there was like a lot of physical abuse. There was a little, like you, you know, just kind of the boys will be boys type thing, right, but ultimately it was that, um, just verbal abuse about anything and everything and being the butt of all jokes, um yeah, and being, you know, used in that way in front of you know girls at the time and stuff like that, which is, you know, that just makes you feel even worse about yourself.

Chris Grainger: 12:27

Right.

Zach Lloyd: 12:32

And that outcast feeling and just feeling like, well, you know, I'm kind of the loser in the group.

Chris Grainger: 12:35

You know that type of thing Well, yeah, and you also mentioned you said something interesting about when you broke up with your girlfriend that you felt a loss of control.

Zach Lloyd: 12:43

Yeah.

Chris Grainger: 12:43

So I mean, would you mind kind of unpacking that?

Zach Lloyd: 12:59

Because it seemed like that led to a spiral that led you to those tall boys where your sister was calling you adults in your life and, basically, like you, you got to do these things to make it in the world. And making it in the world is one of those super broad things. They don't even really tell you what that means, other than, like you know, getting a good job or whatever it is, and then you're going to be successful, which we don't even know what that means either. Uh, but ultimately, if you don't do these things well, then what's left is like game man, like you're just going to be one of those people on the side of the road. That's just like staring at the sidewalk, like nothing. That's the type of feedback I got a lot of the times and whether whether that was, you know, intentional or not, right, like that's the interpretation. And I've talked to a lot I'm, I'm 34 now a lot of millennials in the age group and a lot of us got that.

Zach Lloyd: 13:47

And college was an extremely important thing and academics were an extremely important thing, and it's like, if you don't go to college, like game over and it was funny because like some of my friends at the time, ended up becoming like plumbers and electricians and stuff like that, and they were making you know five times as much as people graduating. Uh, you know college right off the bat. I mean it was wild, but that's kind of where that came from, I think yeah, I totally get it, man.

Chris Grainger: 14:15

So take us to the car. You get the phone call with your sister. It sounds like you had a special, maybe you still do a special relationship with her. She older, she younger why she's one person that you would take.

Zach Lloyd: 14:28

Yeah, yeah, right, yeah, she's older Um and ultimately, you know, she just made some of the same mistakes that I ended up making Um, and she was that uh, voice of grace in my life. Yeah, right, and, and, and that's not something I had a lot of.

Chris Grainger: 14:50

Okay. So I'm curious fast forward now you're doing this sustainable anti-diet coach, which we have to unpack, what that is, but what led you to this health and fitness kind of career path?

Zach Lloyd: 15:10

Yeah, yeah. So ultimately, what happened after that kind of incident was I still didn't learn much from that and I still kept dealing drugs, doing drugs. I ended up getting hooked on OxyContin for a while, okay, and what really changed was one day I was driving to work and I was one of the most hungover I've ever felt because I didn't I wasn't able to get my fix of the oxy the night before that I normally did, and it was like a half dose and it wasn't enough. So I was like already withdrawing and I was going to work and I was just, it was just one of those days where I just was completely losing it in't enough. So I was like already withdrawing and I was going to work and I was just, it was just one of those days where I just was completely losing it in the car, knowing that like, not only did I not have to go to work, but I just didn't know what I was going to do. Like what am I even doing with my life? And just thinking about I need more of that pill. And I was listening to an Eminem song. So I always joke like God saved my life through Eminem and I was listening to an Eminem song. So I always joke like God saved my life through Eminem. It's just like the funny things that God uses, and it's a song called Not Afraid and he talks about taking a stand in the storm. And some of those words just hit me in a different way and I just started bawling my eyes out driving to work and realizing there was just that. It was a black and white moment that if I didn't change then I was going to just, you know, basically die off sooner than later.

Zach Lloyd: 16:33

Or heroin. I heroin was the next step after Oxy, because Oxy was getting more and more expensive at that time and you just couldn't afford it. So, like me and my girlfriend were selling, like electronics, clothes, whatever we could do at the time to get our fix, and ultimately a lot of my friends ended up going to heroin because it was cheaper and it was way better. It was a way better drug. So that moment I made a decision in my mind that I was going to quit now. To quit now. Again, I wasn't saved yet, so it still took a couple years after that, but I haven't.

Zach Lloyd: 17:15

Anybody that's ever had withdrawal symptoms will know that, like you usually don't just quit one day and then you're just like good to go right. This is a week long, if not a month long, process and that's just a feel normal, health wise. Um, I never went back to pills after that day and I still can't explain that other than Christ, I mean, there's just no other explanation for that. It doesn't make any sense in the secular sense and I've studied this a lot and ultimately depression and all sorts of stuff came out of that. But what ultimately happened after that was this kind of like stumbling forward, stumbling forward and then getting back into the gym, like I did in sports with a friend, and then I got serious about it and what happened was it became my new addiction. So working out with the weights and having a little bit of community with other people that were working out of the weights, playing a little basketball, that was enough to get me hooked. And so my addiction was replaced with a healthier addiction working out.

Zach Lloyd: 18:17

And then ultimately, like, guys are asking me hey, zach, what are you doing, man? Like you're looking great, like you just transformed, like what are you doing? And then all of a sudden, it just led to this thing where it was like okay, well, people are asking me questions Like, what are you doing? And then all of a sudden it just led to this thing where it was like, okay, well, people are asking me questions, like, yeah, I'll train you a little bit. And then I got like obsessed with just health and fitness and all this other stuff and I really I use obsessed because I really do feel that it was a new addiction and that served me really well for a long time and that's why I say this common thread of identity. So my new identity was like, oh, I'm the fit guy now in all the circles that people know me and I'm that guy. And so, being that guy, going from the skinny bullied kid going to that guy, and then being recognized by women, more all of this stuff. And then you know I was getting older, so I was maturing, more all that stuff kind of happening at the same time.

Zach Lloyd: 19:12

Yeah, so I realized, oh, I have control over my body. That means I have control over my life and like, all of a sudden, making better decisions. And then that led to, you know, making a little more money in jobs, stuff like that. That led to you know, making a little more money in jobs, stuff like that. Well, I lead you down this road because ultimately, you know, about six years ago, when I was about 28,. I was saved when I was 26.

Zach Lloyd: 19:42

So two years after being saved God's like Zach you got to give this up. This is your idol. Your fitness, your health you got to give this up. This is your idol. Your fitness, your health, your body image, your looks, your muscles all of it. It is just another idol, and you've exchanged drug abuse out for it. And what's really remarkable, too, is like society will really really enhance that, because you walk into any room and people are asking you about health and fitness or whatever, or they look at you differently because you're more fit, which you know. It's just so silly when you really think about it. Yeah, but that's the truth.

Zach Lloyd: 20:21

And so, after being saved for two years, turned about 28 years old somewhere in there, and then I was just kind of praying one day and God just illuminated me and it just it wrecked me because I realized, like what does it even look like to give this up? Because I was, I'm still the guy like, I'm still the guy that people go to in my you know, small groups of influence that you know like about health and fitness. And that's when I realized, okay, restricting my food and being obsessed about counting calories and controlling these variables and controlling the volume that I work out, and knowing how much I did this week and that week all of those things at their core by themselves are not bad, but the way that I was using them and looking in the mirror and feeling good or bad about myself depending on how much of a pump I had that day or not that's that's the problem, and ultimately that was that was more of my god than christ was. And so over the last couple of years that's been a huge piece in my life and I really feel like this last couple of years God has just showed me that I'm kind of renewed from that and I've let it go. I've just let it go, and so that's what really got me onto this sustainable anti-diet coaching which you know kind of came up with, and there's a lot of buzzwords in the health and fitness industry that drive me nuts. I don't like pigeonholing myself, but at some, at some point, you got to tell people what you do.

Zach Lloyd: 22:01

So, right, the sustainable part is massively huge, because I was getting all these results with clients. They were losing weight, getting muscle, whatever it is like. Oh yeah, zach, you're great, you know what you're doing. Well, I didn't feel great after we would get results in. A client would just start going back to their old ways, or they would not like that. Let's say, they lost 20 pounds and they would gain 30 pounds. Whatever it was, though, those did not feel good to me, even though the progress pictures were great. The short-term results were great.

Zach Lloyd: 22:31

What about the long-term? And why were people not actually changing for the long-term in a sustainable way? And what I realized was most of the things that I was taught and I learned in books and certifications and stuff like that were just of this world. Right, it's about the short-term gratification and the short-term results, and it's May right now.

Zach Lloyd: 22:53

Right, Everybody's got the beach body on their mind and ultimately, it's just about selling more stuff, and we all need more stuff to feel better about ourselves, and that's what it kind of alluded to me over time, and that's where the sustainable piece comes from. I want no part in any coaching, essentially, unless you know, somebody's got a wedding and they want to get a little more fit. I get that right, like that's. There's no like moral high ground here. It's just ultimately for the average person. We need to be focusing on the long term and the sustainable way to do it, not the short term, because that always leads us to just tripping over ourselves, making mistakes and then ultimately feeling worse about ourselves, and then you get in this kind of like shame spiral that takes place. That's kind of how I got here.

Chris Grainger: 23:41

Okay, I got it, man. Well, look, let's take a quick break and we'll be right back. Guys, if you're a man who's looking for greater spiritual guidance into how to become a better leader, finding resources that you can trust and then implement can be daunting For me personally. I thought it was a lost cause and I decided to take the action, knowing that I wasn't alone. It was because of this wide gap that we created our line within this community, and the areas that we're helping Christian men grow are incredible. For instance, we've built ways for guys to lean in and grow through fun events like our daily spiritual kickoff, where you get that much needed boost directly from God's word, our Bible studies that always focus on how to discern and apply what we learn, and even our amazing forum where you can speak your mind without fear of getting shut down or judged by the extreme rules of modern day social media. On top of all that, we know that many men won't help overcoming issues and becoming stronger in many different areas. That's why we created several mastermind groups, where the iron truly sharpens iron. Our community is about having a growth mindset, accountability, intentionality and transparency. In other words, just leave fake you at home and come to community, just as you are. I fully believe what we feel. I see the impact it's making on men right now and I would love to have you check it out. So start your very own 30-day free trial today to see how we can help you be a better leader. So if you're ready to take that first step, head over to thelinewithinus and get started. Your journey begins here. Visit thelinewithinus and I'll see you inside the den.

Chris Grainger: 25:27

One thing that you were talking about you know you may fitness your idol. You are finding a lot, and I find a lot of guys find their identity in their self. Yeah, and you know, and, and like you said, you were doing some good stuff. I mean, you're taking care of it. It's a whole lot better than being on the oxy right, and so it's completely from the outside world. You're doing some good things, but when we put identity and self as Christian men, we know that can be a dangerous path to go down. And what helps you know? You said you got saved when you were 26. Tell us about your journey to being saved. What brought you to that point where you surrendered your life to Christ?

Zach Lloyd: 26:05

Yeah, yeah Again, it was just continually tripping over myself and seeking out anything and everything I could to find meaning and fulfillment in, and it ultimately came to my aunt inviting me out to Indiana, where I live now, because she lived out here at the time and I had just got quit a job. I didn't really know what I was at a gym and I was like so I thought I'd become a physical therapist and so I came out here just to hang out with her for a couple of weeks and I've always had a weird, unusually weird close relationship for somebody that I only saw probably like five times when I was a young kid and didn't have like any, you know, real like long-term relationship with her because she lived so far away. But there was something about her that was different than anybody that I'd ever really met before, and so I just kind of went out on a whim because I had nothing better to do and took her up on coming out. Well, what I know now is I mean, she has the Holy Spirit flowing through her and she's a different person because of it. Ultimately, that's what it was. I was drawn to the Holy Spirit and her love and her grace and her mercy and she challenged me in that two weeks and said hey, you need a job. There's this job here in Indiana that's perfect for you. And I wasn't qualified for it at all. So I just thought it was a joke. And she said God is greater than that. If you're supposed to have this job, you'll get this job. Just pray about it.

Zach Lloyd: 27:33

And so at the time I was kind of like okay, like I love you, You're awesome, Like God clearly works for you, but that doesn't really work for me, Like you're filled with all this joy and good for you, but it's kind of like you know, a little cheesy, Right? So I go back home and you know, in a moment I will never forget, like exactly where I was. I just like I look up at the ceiling because that's where God lives, apparently and you jokingly say, you know, I was just like hey, God, I really need to change my life. If you're really real like. You're like, yeah, OK, I'll trust my aunt for a day, All right, If this is real, like, uh, you'll get this job, that's impossible for me. And if you do like, because I'm unqualified for the job, I don't have the credentials for it Then I will follow you for the rest of my life. And, sure enough, in next week I got a call that I got that job and it just it blew me off my seat.

Zach Lloyd: 28:37

I moved away from all of the you know the friends and the influences that I was facing at the time, Got this new job and I thought I was going to become a physical therapist at the time and I said, OK, what does it mean to follow God? Like, what is that? What is that? What is Jesus? And I was born in a Catholic kind of upbringing, and so that was one of the reasons why I was so. I was just like anti God in such a great way because I actually worked for the church for a little bit too, and the legalism was something that was never really explained to me until that point where I moved in with my aunt and she just shared the love of Christ with me, and that transformed everything. And I've been here ever since Wow, I just go here ever since Wow.

Chris Grainger: 29:11

I just go to show you, man. I mean, when you're walking with him and the fruit of the spirit is coming out and people saying that that love, joy and peace and everything man, it can, it can, just it just obviously it poured out onto you. You were drawn to that and she she probably wasn't hitting you with Bible verses, she was just loving it.

Zach Lloyd: 29:28

Right, exactly, that's so true, that's so true.

Chris Grainger: 29:32

And so then you changed your environment, so you actually left the old self behind, literally to a new environment. So I mean that just sounds incredible. So did you get plugged in with a church like discipleship? How have you progressed on your journey. We, you know it's, it's a, it's a daily, daily grind, definitely, definitely.

Zach Lloyd: 29:54

Yeah, it's funny because the first person my aunt introduced me to was a guy that was in a band that was a christian band, and then he played for the church one of the local churches and we actually hit it off great and I was like, wow, this isn't like a normal Christian, like in my worldview, like the Christian guys and youth group that I had grown up with is like, oh my gosh, I just wanted to like beat my head against the wall talking to some of these people because they were just again, there's nothing wrong with them, right, but that was my worldview. And he was like a down to earth dude and he like played bass at the church, like what? That was so foreign to me, because that was just so foreign. So, anyways, we become great friends and then I'm like, all right, I'll just come to church and like see you play bass, like that's what a friend does. I support people, right? So I did that and I've been at that same church ever since.

Chris Grainger: 30:49

And now I'm plugged in.

Zach Lloyd: 30:50

I'm in a small group, I'm just plugged in fully. I'm doing the Christian walk in whatever the best way that God leads me to do that in reading the word. I think being a small group is important, all of that stuff.

Chris Grainger: 31:04

But it's wild and it's crazy too because you're right, lots of people's worldview all the Christian guys and the youth guys, it could be. You know, these guys are a little bit awkward or they're socially just a little bit set apart versus like no, you could walk with the Lord and have a little swagger, it's OK.

Zach Lloyd: 31:23

Yeah, right, right, exactly, that's OK. Yeah, and it's OK if you don't too. But that was just my skewed worldview. You know what I mean? It's almost I always joke about it. It's like, cause I have a one of my another aunt of mine homeschooled all of her kids. She's had like seven kids and they're they're some of the coolest kids I've ever met in my life and it again switching the worldview of oh, they're homeschooled, they must be weird. Like no, it doesn't have to be like that, but it was like that stereotypical homeschooled Christian. Like you got to be kind of weird, like that's kind of where I was coming from and it was just not true.

Chris Grainger: 31:56

Yeah, my wife she was homeschooled, Her and her three siblings, K through 12, went to Liberty and you would think, all the things right, these got to be some weird folks, but they're awesome, I mean she's awesome, obviously. So it's just, you know, it's just funny, the different types of, like you said, the worldviews, people, the perceptions that they would have.

Zach Lloyd: 32:16

Yeah, for sure.

Chris Grainger: 32:17

Totally Well, man. So let's talk. So now you're getting into this anti-diet, into this sustainability, Kind of break that down because as Christian men. This is an area I see a lot of guys struggle with. They're struggling with, and the reason I talk about health on the line within is because what if God calls you to do something hard? Right, I mean, what if he calls?

Chris Grainger: 32:36

you to do some difficult stuff and it's man. We have to be ready. So give us some like some insight to what this looks like, because I love the sustainability part of this, yeah definitely, and I'll be up front, I'm wrestling with what.

Zach Lloyd: 32:49

What does it really mean to fully live out the, you know, a Christian man's life through the Bible, biblically, in a healthy and fit way? And there's a lot of, again, legalistic ways that even good churches might come at it from, and I think you've got to be really careful with that. So the sustainable piece, I think, is so important because it tells us a couple things. It says one we're not embarking on a journey that's going to be done like this summer or next year. Okay, it's a lifelong journey and that's okay. So it gives you again the grace to operate in that zone of you're not going to be perfect and you're not going to be Brad Pitt by next, next summer, and the goal is not to be that Brad Pitt. I think, again, that's part of the problem as well, right, sure. So I think ultimately, what it really comes down to is for anybody, it's like where are you starting and wherever you're starting, like God is not a judgmental God trying to motivate you through judgment, right? So recognize that is from the enemy and that is your human flesh desire to do that, and none of that is going to help you progress at all. So you really got to let it go. But you also have to kind of take an account of where you're at now.

Zach Lloyd: 34:13

Right, and I realize a lot of people listening to this might be at different health and fitness levels. Like some of them might play basketball once a week and then others are working so much and into the kids sports right now it's like they barely get any walks in. And then there are some other guys that are, right now it's like they barely get any walks in. And then there's some other guys that are, well, I walk, you know, once a day usually, or I get 30 minutes a day, or I get a couple hours a week. Whatever, it is right, taking account of where you're at and just saying, okay, what am I doing now? And then what is a little bit I can add in? And that's the activity side, right. And then I think it gets even more interesting because I think the activity side is almost pushed a little too much. Right, like I'll get in the gym, do do the weights. Like if you're not doing the weights you're just going to be weak for the rest of your life. Like I love strength training, I'm going to be the last person to tell you not to try strength training. But at the end of the day, it's not not the most important thing to just jump into because it's the right thing to do. I think it's more about what can you do in your life that's movement related, that you can enjoy to some extent. So then you can adhere to it more and then you can do it more, and then all of a sudden you will actually change and be active more and move more, and then you can start talking about stuff like okay, well, strength training is actually kind of exceptional in some ways because we know we need to maintain muscle mass. Especially after we leave, like 35 years old, we just start like dropping muscle mass off our body unless we're stimulating it in some way. So I will say that's important.

Zach Lloyd: 35:46

But ultimately, starting from that level of saying, okay, where am I at now, what can I do? Just a little more of, and it's kind of like I like using the brushing my teeth analogy or not brushing my teeth analogy, excuse me. Flossing my teeth analogy, okay, I don't. I've never liked to floss my teeth for whatever reason. It didn't get into my habits like it should have as a young kid and I always challenge people like, ok, if you're not flossing your teeth now, ok, and you go to the dentist. Like you got to do it, you got to do it, you got to do it. Ok, yeah, we know we have to do it, right, it's the same thing. Like we know we need to move more, we know we need to eat more vegetables. Like we don't need to be told that, we already kind of know that Right.

Zach Lloyd: 36:24

Ultimately, if you start like, okay, this is it. I'm motivated, I'm going to get this done, I'm going to do this, this and this Point to me somebody that that's worked for that almost never works and if it works, it's only short term. So why not floss one tooth today, and then can you do it tomorrow? And then it sounds so silly and easy that you want to laugh at it. Like, are you serious? Like, of course, I can floss one tooth. Come on, man, yeah, good, well, show me, prove it to yourself, right? And it's kind of like incorporate that. And this is where kind of behavior change and habit formation becomes super crucial. And I think, understanding it really well and understanding it to the point that you're probably going to be able to do a lot less than you think you can, and that's okay.

Zach Lloyd: 37:15

It's more about the compounding of those over time that makes the biggest best results ever, and using that as an example can be huge. So it's like again, if you don't eat a lot of vegetables right now for dinner or lunch or breakfast, right, what about just adding in one piece? And again I'm just, I'll just say broccoli, whatever vegetable you want, like, again, making it as easy as possible to start going in the right direction. It's like, okay, can you do one broccoli floret tonight for dinner? If you're doing zero, not the whole bag, just one. And then what happens is, if you do one, sometimes you're like, oh, I'm going to floss one more tooth, or I'm going to eat just a little more vegetables, or I'm going to eat a little less of that. Like, really fat protein, I'm going to use a little leaner protein today, right, these?

Zach Lloyd: 37:58

little steps can compound over time, and I think that is one of the most underutilized tools we have, because the enemy wants to beat us down and it's so much easier to beat somebody down if they're trying to be perfect with everything they're doing, from their diet to activity, to timing it, to doing the right workouts, all of this stuff. You can lose your mind in it and I've done that plenty of times myself, right, and I think that's the best place for people to start.

Chris Grainger: 38:25

Okay, and going all the way back to where, when you started, you said you really began with people with redefining their goals. I'm just curious for for specifically our listeners, as a Christian man wanting to honor and glorify God with our body and all that we do and all we eat, like how does faith, how does that tie into those goals? Have you seen any guys do that directly, or would you give any advice on that?

Zach Lloyd: 38:52

Yeah, I think prayer is a huge part of it, because I think, again, we're all so very different and I think there's there might be a lot of Christian men out there that are like, let's say, christian influencers, men in health and fitness, and they're like well, you got to be able to stand up and protect your wife, right, or else you're not. You're not doing things right, and I think there's probably a lot of truth in that Right. Like God created us to protect our family For sure, there's no doubt about that. But if, if you're going to like put that on somebody who's extremely out of shape and it's just like not even possible in the next like three months, like that's demotivating and that's not helpful.

Zach Lloyd: 39:30

So, I think prayerfully asking God to give you the right place to start is probably one of the most profound things you can do, because ultimately, like I said, we all kind of know what to do. Right, we all know we need to have some more, and I could like nerd out on this and talk about this for hours, right, but ultimately we all know we need to move a little more. We need to probably eat a little less or eat a little more quality, have some more vegetables and fruits in our diet, lean meats and then not overdo the fat, right, for the majority of the population that's pretty dang accurate and you can get into the nuance. But I I think it's really more about the prayerful thing, because ultimately, what I found in myself and I'll go back to myself a little bit is I was using food also as an idol. So, yeah, I was working out all this all this time and what I was able to do was I didn't want to, like feel my emotions or like go to god with my emotions, like that was just too, too, too difficult for me. So instead, like you know, I would just eat rolls or rows of Oreos, right, or tubs of Ben and Jerry's and stuff my emotions with food, sugar, fat, salt, all of it.

Zach Lloyd: 40:44

And when I started to prayerfully ask God, what does it look like to not have health and fitness be my idol? That was one of the first things he said. He's like right there, like you know that you're being gluttonous with food. That was that was my place to start, right, and so I think we all have something to that effect in either what we're eating or the lack of movement that we have in the life, or the lack of sleep. Right, it's like okay, did you really need to binge watch Netflix right before bed? It's like maybe that would have that like a little bit of that time again. Nothing wrong with Netflix, but maybe just a little less Netflix and a little more prayer time, quiet time and then getting that that space, because that's another thing.

Zach Lloyd: 41:30

I'm like one of those kind of like active people. It's always got to be doing something or else I don't feel right and right. God was like hey, no, you got to sit down. Man, like you got to calm down and create space for me to talk to you, because if you don't, then it's just going to be caffeine workout, caffeine workout all day long and then crash because you ate so much food. You've got to sleep, right, and that was kind of like my cycle, and so, ultimately, I think there's probably a couple of things in there that people can relate to, whether it's food or video games or Netflix or whatever it is.

Zach Lloyd: 42:03

It's not only about adding some positive and healthy things in. It's about okay, god, where am I really not honoring you in my actions and behaviors? And I think in today's society, especially in the Western world, food is one of the biggest ones that we're really missing on, and I know that we all kind of have in the back of our mind what we could be doing a little better on or doing less of. And I want to make it clear, chris, too I'm not saying restrict desserts, I'm not saying restrict sweets or any of that. For some people that might be necessary for a short amount of time. I work with a lot of people with emotional eating, stress eating, binge eating, issues, and you have to be careful with that, because that's again the sustainable anti-diet approach that I bring to the table is we're really not trying to restrict anything, because if we start to restrict again, what does that do? That builds up a wall for the devil to use against us, because if we're restricting something, we're going to want it even more.

Zach Lloyd: 43:05

And so you have to be really careful with that as well.

Chris Grainger: 43:07

Little caveat A hundred percent, how about? Also, one thing I'll think about when I'm talking with a lot of guys about this I'd love to get your insight is the whole idea of our calendars and the hurry that we're always in.

Chris Grainger: 43:24

Guys are just always in a hurry because we got so much jam packed we're trying to get done. So, man, that's zach, I'm feeling you, but I can't prioritize this. You don't know what I gotta go to my plate like. How do you help those types of guys when they come to you with that feedback?

Zach Lloyd: 43:34

yeah I. So I always thought the whole busyness thing was like before I had a wife I thought busyness was kind of like, really you're that busy you can, you can't work out, come on. And then I had a wife, right. And then I was like, okay, there's a little more responsibility here, all right. And then I had kids and I have two kids. I have a four-year-old and two-year-old. It's like, okay, I'm starting to see what people are talking about, this whole dad bod thing, right.

Zach Lloyd: 43:56

I can see where that comes from right and ultimately, like God used all of these responsibilities to sanctify us. But I think that busyness pieces gets more and more interesting as we get older. So I go back to one of my favorite clients over the time and he was literally I actually learned his schedule and he was engaged in like kind of politics and stuff like that and he was on planes. If he wasn't on a plane, he was driving somewhere or he was at a party or an event, something I mean. And then he had a wife and kids and he was actually the most busiest person I've ever met and I could see it on the schedule, because that's one thing I do with some people.

Zach Lloyd: 44:37

I'm like, okay, like let's actually look at your schedule, because most people won't look at a week, they won't write it down and and dictate where all of their time actually goes, because I think we all kind of feel like we're busy and we are don't get me wrong but uh, we waste a lot of time too. This guy was not wasting time, so what he found worked for him was he knew he had to, he knew he had to move, so for him he did some weights. But what he really found out worked well was he would get on the treadmill and he's like I can be on the treadmill but it's like okay, well, where's my prayer time, where's my? So this is why he's one of my favorite clients, because I've never seen anybody do this. He was on a treadmill, speedwalking and reading the Bible, okay, so for him that worked really well.

Zach Lloyd: 45:26

It wasn't, like you know, like look at me reading the Bible while I'm speedwalking, like that was really his time, and what we know about kind of like human neurology too, is like he was getting ramped up in his head and then also taking the word and praying at the same time it was cool to see and I got to see this guy's life kind of like work out a little bit and it wasn't one of those things like, oh, he looks good on the outside and on the inside no, like he had great relationship with his wife, his kids were awesome, like that type of thing. He was really living it out. But he also knew that God had him in this place in this really busy season of his life for a reason. But he was not going to let go of reading in the word and praying and so I use him as an example because he's the extreme right and I've never gotten to that point yet where I'm speed walking on a treadmill reading the Bible.

Zach Lloyd: 46:10

But that is impressive, I give that as an extreme, because there's always a way to get it in.

Zach Lloyd: 46:17

But with the busyness, I think most of us are not in that situation and I really think, looking at our calendars and saying, ok, like I said, the whole Netflix thing right, it's just an example, not being up on Netflix but ultimately there is some time in our calendars when we are severely wasting our time and pretending to rest but not actually resting.

Zach Lloyd: 46:53

Because I bet you would agree with me, chris, whatever the most restful thing you and I can think of off the top of our mind whether it's me snowboarding on a mountain or sitting on a mountain reading a book, or whatever it is on a beach for somebody else, right, all of that is great. But I think where we truly find rest is when we're resting in prayer and we're listening to God speak into our lives. That's actually truly resting, and I don't think all of us have that fully scheduled in to our busy lives. And so when you prioritize that first, it's funny how God will make it work for you, but your schedule will kind of figure itself out a little bit there. I really believe that.

Chris Grainger: 47:21

Amen to that. Well, guys, we're going to take our last break. We'll be right back. I find it helps me to have a guide at times when I'm reading and studying the Bible. One way that helps me is by using devotionals to guide not only what I read, but insights into the scriptures themselves. So we were blessed to become an author on the YouVersion Bible app and we saw an immediate opportunity to help others with devotionals around the areas that we spend the most time talking about at the Lion Within Us. So if you enjoy the show, you may enjoy these devos as well. We have some guys that are using them as part of their small groups as well, as they're a great way to get conversations going. So to see the ones that we've created, head over to the lionwithinus slash you version, and that's Y-O-U-V-E-R-S-I-O-N to learn more. So that's the lionwithinus slash you version. To get started with your own men's devotional today. Well, it kind of sounded like Zach, when you just went through that. I talked to the guys a lot within the Lion and just my areas of influence around.

Chris Grainger: 48:38

When you look at your calendar, it can be task-driven or it can be priority-driven. Right, You're going to let your task drive your calendar or you're going to put your. Your priorities will come to your calendar, Like on my calendar right now when I look at it for today. This is no joke. I had this one lined up, this conversation with you, but then I have an hour to 90 minutes blocked after this, after I finished to go for a run, because I know I got to move today Right, and I got to get that in. And then you know I have time with my daughters to land out for later tonight I'm going to a softball, I'm coaching for them.

Chris Grainger: 49:09

But I mean these things. If we look at our calendars, you're right, I think there's a lot of fluff, Lots of times that we feel like we're super busy and hurried. But if we peel back the layers of onion, there is room there. And in those extreme cases, like you had right there, man, you've got to get a Bible and get on a treadmill, I don't know, but that was pretty intense, man. So I just hats off to you for coming down. I mean working with these guys and these girls that you've done with over the years. I mean how do you see what's the biggest area of struggle? Maybe give these guys some some parting advice as we wrap up, as we get here to the end, on what they need to be doing, to be thinking about that sustainable model as they move forward.

Zach Lloyd: 49:51

Yeah, yeah, I think the first place to start is OK, what, what is it? Whether it's movement, nutrition, sleep, you know, just lifestyle in general. Sure, what are some of the things that automatically come to mind when we're talking about this? Like they're in your mind. They'll come up right front and center. And, if not, like ask God to bring it to your mind, bring it to your attention, of saying like, okay, if, if I don't do this or if I do this, depending on what it is, what, what is like kind of one of the most shameful things I'm doing with my health and fitness right now. What, what is that? And then, once you grab onto that and, for instance, the uh, the sweets and the binge eating, food and that type of thing, or emotional eating, stress eating that's a huge one that usually comes out with, I would say, 80% of my clients Um, I've had some people that look great on the outside, um, struggle on the inside with some of that stuff, and so I'll use that as an example.

Zach Lloyd: 50:48

What really takes place is it usually takes place kind of behind the scenes and that's that's an issue. And so what? What really happens? There is, like you're doing this behavior of, like you know eating too much food or sweets or whatever it is, and then you're not really opening up to anybody about it and you're hiding it because you feel shame about it. And I think that shame again, it's not coming from God. And so I think one of the first steps you can do is reach out to a friend or a family member or somebody that you trust, or a prayer partner or somebody in your small group and let them know that you're going to really start making some changes, but you want to use them as a sounding board if they're comfortable with that and I think we all have somebody like that, and if you don't, that's the first priority is get somebody like that and and be explicit, like reach out to a friend and be like, hey, we've been friends for a while.

Zach Lloyd: 51:48

I would really like to have you be my sounding board, um, because I'm gonna try to make some changes in my life. Here's my changes and here's the number one thing I'm worried about. I really shame myself when I do this behavior, like it's when the kids go to sleep and I'm watching TV and I just like I just over consume and I'm not even thinking about it, and I just want you to know that that's where I have the most shame. So I'm really not going to want to talk about it a lot, but I'm asking you to bring it up to me, you know, every week or every other week or whatever it is. Just ask me about it, just say hey, hey, zach, how's that going? Like, how's that going?

Zach Lloyd: 52:23

And just opening the door to another believer, a friend, a family member or something like that to just have those conversations, because that's ultimately what I'm doing with a lot of my clients is the coaching aspect is yeah, I'm the professional and I know a lot more than the average person, right, but ultimately it's having that vulnerable conversation to get it out in the open and then you can deal with it, you can pray about it, you can have God intervene in it, because if it stays in the shadows, good luck. Like that's exactly where the devil wants you the Screwtape.

Zach Lloyd: 52:53

Letters is one of my favorite books and it's like CS Lewis has these conversations with these demons, right, and they're all like talking about how they're going to mess us humans up. They're all like talking about how they're going to mess us humans up. It's a really good illustration of when you keep things in the dark and you don't share them to your friends and family and believers. That's where the issues are going to live. So that's where I say that's what I see with most of my clients is there's these shame spirals that take place in isolation and we need to bring it out of isolation. And you can call a coach too, like whatever you feel more comfortable with doing, and maybe it's just starting with God and saying, okay, god, just telling God, because you know there's a lot of things I've done that like God knows about, but I haven't been praying about and it. You know, I always just picture God just like waiting, like you know, on his clock, like, hey, zach, you going to bring that up in prayer, yet you know like stuff like that.

Chris Grainger: 53:42

It's like come on, he knows about it.

Zach Lloyd: 53:44

You're not telling him anything new, so open up about it 100%.

Chris Grainger: 53:48

Got to have those guys. How about? Where does it? You've already mentioned a few times, but where does it come to work? Does it from your experience, working out with people versus working out alone? Particularly Christian men, christian brothers in Christ, should that, should they be trying to prioritize that or adding that element in? Do you think that that benefits, or is that just you know?

Zach Lloyd: 54:08

another factor yeah Well, so it's. It's kind of like that's why I really like what you do, actually, chris. It's because you're creating a environment for people to do these things together or challenge each other or have accountability or mix some of those or mix all of those. So I definitely think, like God wants us in community and for the longest time I wanted nothing to do with having a small group in my church- Like I just wanted nothing to do with it.

Zach Lloyd: 54:39

I rather like just me and God and the Bible and like cool I don't. But amazing things happen when you open up to other men about what's going on in your life. And again, like all of us basically in the Western world, like you said, we're all so busy, like we all need to be moving more. So why not get moving with a friend? And then you both get a huge benefit out of it and maybe even a conversation takes place about God and in between, like there's all of these benefits.

Zach Lloyd: 55:06

So I would definitely say, if it's not too far out of your comfort zone, definitely try to do that and just have like a gentle accountability with somebody. Like hey, like on these days, at these times, we get together. Or the beautiful thing about technology like you and I, right now, you don't even have to be with somebody. Technology like you and I, right now, you don't even have to be with somebody. Like get on a phone call and be like hey, at this time I'm going to call you, I'm going to go on a walk, this is your lunch break, right? Like why don't you go on a walk and we'll just have a quick conversation.

Chris Grainger: 55:31

Amen, love it, love it, zach. Well, man, this has been great. Why don't? Before we wrap up, let's get into our lightning round together I will, we always like to do this and then we'll give you a chance to point the guys to where they can connect with you if they're really feeling like they need some additional help there. Man, so you want to have a little bit of fun here at the end, let's do it. All right, man, I'm just curious for you what is your favorite hobby? I know you're working out, but what's your favorite hobby outside of the gym?

Zach Lloyd: 55:58

Yeah, well, you know what I I've been? Uh, so I've been wrestling with God a lot because when COVID hit, I closed down the gym for about three months and I had all this extra time and I was completely off social media. It was the first time I had my daughter and or my first child, and it was my daughter, and so it was really cool. I got to be home, be with my wife, be with my new child, all this stuff, right.

Zach Lloyd: 56:23

But I went back to some old habits and I bought a gaming computer and I started playing games again, and I used to do that as a kid for hours and hours, and hours and hours. So that's one thing that really not many people know about me is I really like playing video games. But I'm wrestling with guy Bring it up now because it's almost a challenge, because I don't want to tell anybody this, so I'm going to do it publicly on a podcast. I'm wrestling with God and making sure that that doesn't become a new idol for me because, it's really fun and I can make some friends on it, and it's even better because you got community.

Zach Lloyd: 56:58

But ultimately that may not be the best place for me in the next 10 years, so I'm really praying through that right now. But that's one thing. That is a hobby, other than working out, that I really enjoy. I got you.

Chris Grainger: 57:08

I got, so what's your go-to game?

Zach Lloyd: 57:11

It's called escape from Tarkov and it's a first person shooter. Okay, okay, nice Well, let's think about this If you were to have a superpower, man, if you could have any superpower out there, what would it be and how would you use it?

Chris Grainger: 57:37

Oh, this is a good one. I would have to go with listening to people's.

Zach Lloyd: 57:38

What is it called when you listen to people's thoughts? Yeah, yeah, yeah, mainly because I'm a coach and what I ultimately find is I have to do a lot more digging than I think is necessary. It's like man, if you just threw that out on the table the moment you met me, like we would have saved so many hours of time. So it's not to be invasive, it's just. I think as humans, we have all these walls up and I just love it laying all those walls down and like getting into it. Cause like praise, praise God, like if there's no judgment involved and there's none of that like right, it can only be edifying to the spirit, right, love it, love it now as a as a as a wellness and fitness coach?

Chris Grainger: 58:15

yeah, I'm very curious on this question. So what is your go-to food, like all-time favorite food, because it doesn't have to be broccoli, like, make sure it's something good bro yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, it's funny A real quick.

Zach Lloyd: 58:26

My daughter's four and she had a questionnaire at her school and they're like what's your dad's favorite food? And she put broccoli on there. That was hilarious, cause I like broccoli but it's not my favorite food. I don't know how she got that in her mind. So it's so funny. You say that um, it's so funny. You say that um, it's, I'm a simple man. It's, it's some pizza and ice cream.

Chris Grainger: 58:46

That's okay, like that's my go-to right there I hear you, bro, I hear you speaking my language.

Zach Lloyd: 58:51

Now you gotta have pineapple on the pizza, chris? Okay, these people are anti-pineapple. You got problems.

Chris Grainger: 58:56

That's my wife she, she's always gotta have pineapple on her pizza, so that's there we go.

Zach Lloyd: 59:01

I like her already.

Chris Grainger: 59:02

there you go, man, man, what about? Uh, you're, uh, you're all about helping people with, create new habits and get you know, just just become better versions of themselves. Do you have any new habits that you started, maybe within the last year, or something that you want to start that you get a lot of value out of?

Zach Lloyd: 59:18

Yeah, I actually. So I've always been into finances since I was a younger boy. It was just fascinating to me, and my dad taught me a lot about banking early on and stuff like that. So one of the things I'm getting into lately is learning more about markets. I actually thought I was going to be an economics major a long time ago, so getting back into that, that's something that I just find finally so fascinating, because ultimately, like money and power and time, all of those things are always intermingled, and I just think it tells us a lot about the world we live in. So I just find it extremely fascinating.

Chris Grainger: 59:50

Okay, very cool, Very cool. So you know, as we're getting here close to the end of the lightning round, when you think about God we've talked a lot about some spiritual things today for sure, it's being just taking care of our bodies. What's your favorite thing about God?

Zach Lloyd: 1:00:04

I've never been asked that. Chris, without grace, there, there is just nothing to me. I, like I said, my life story is thinking so little of myself, sure, and god's grace is just so remarkably transforming, um, that if, if you can grasp onto that, that's, that's my most favorite thing. It's just like the ultimate, our ultimate father, creator of everything. Our dad is just like straight up hey, I love you, no matter what, like the weight of that is so heavy.

Zach Lloyd: 1:00:41

Cry on the podcast. I mean truly feeling that that's. That's my favorite thing that's heavy, bro.

Chris Grainger: 1:00:46

Now let's flip it. What's 180, 180 degrees? What's your least favorite thing about that evil one, oh the shame.

Zach Lloyd: 1:00:56

The shame, definitely. I've said that a lot today and I that's, that's it. The shame, the, the little lies that make you think that you, that whatever you've done wrong or you didn't get right, that's going to be the thing that just ruins everything. And if you can let that go, that's one reason why I brought up the video games today, chris. I didn't want to speak about that at all. Some of my closest friends I don't like talking to about right, but it's like if I can get that out, satan has no power over me in that area.

Zach Lloyd: 1:01:28

It's so simple, but it's very hard to do, so I'm not patting myself on the back. It's just such a good example of that that is. That is it? If we can get rid of that shame like it just opens the door to God in so many ways.

Chris Grainger: 1:01:40

Amen, brother. You just put it in the light today, and it's Jesus can take care of the rest. The Holy Spirit's going to guide you from there. Amen, you know what's the all right. So last question for you in the lightning round, zach what do you hope the guys and even the ladies out there listening remember the most about our conversation today?

Zach Lloyd: 1:01:59

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I really I'm going to pray for all of you after this, but specifically, I really hope I was able to convey the message of sustainably looking at the rest of your life and not going after the short term and we talked about finances a second ago. It's like the best investors of all time they focus on the long term, not the short term, and if we can do that with our bodies and glorify God in the process, christian men and women are going to look a whole lot different.

Chris Grainger: 1:02:29

Amen to that, amen to that. Well, zach, where do you want to send the listeners to connect with you, to learn about the things you're doing and just to get some of your resources?

Zach Lloyd: 1:02:38

Yeah, you can find me on Zach Lloyd two L's Lloyd, l-l-o-y-d. Coachingcom. Zachlloydcoachingcom. Chris, I'll share a little freebie guide for everybody. It's kind of showing you how to get off counting calories. It's something that's so popular out there right now and again. It's not wrong in itself, but if you want to be sustainable over time, most people are not going to count calories for the rest of their life. So this guide will show you how to not count calories but still have some idea of what you should be eating, portion wise, um to be healthy and fit. And where do they get that guide?

Zach Lloyd: 1:03:11

I'll give you the link for that. I'll give you the link for that, but you can go on my Instagram or my YouTube and it'll be there too. Uh, Zach Lloyd coaching there as well.

Chris Grainger: 1:03:18

All right, and that's the ZACH guys, and there's going to be a link in the show notes as well for you Go check that out. Thank you so much, zach. So, yeah, anything else you'd like to share today? This has been a wonderful conversation.

Zach Lloyd: 1:03:30

No, I think that's it, Chris. Thanks for having me. I really appreciate your time. This has been awesome.

Chris Grainger: 1:03:34

This has been awesome, man. Well, I hope you have a wonderful day and thank you so much for joining us. Are you a manager, solopreneur or business leader? Are you a husband or father? Do you have people counting on you to guide and direct them personally and or professionally? Get the guidance and confidence you need at the Summit Leadership Development, an intensive, biblically-based mastermind group that transcends the boundaries of conventional leadership. Where there is no vision, the people perish. That's why we focus on the perfect, inerrant Word of God to become strong men and leaders in our business, home and community. Join other men who are ready to speak and embrace truth. Learn how to refine your approach and become a beacon of light in a dark world in all aspects of life. Our intentional monthly sessions will give you an accountability partner to dig deeper throughout the month. The summit is empowering leaders like you to amplify their influence in the workforce, home and community. Don't miss this opportunity to become a strong leader in a weak world. Secure your spot today at thelionwithinus slash leadership. That's thelionwithinus slash leadership. All right, guys, I told you it was going to be a good one. So Zach is awesome. I knew I was going to enjoy working with him. I was not disappointed in the least.

Chris Grainger: 1:05:07

And the question I really want you to think about as you leave here today is how do you find joy in fitness? That joy may look different for some of you guys, right, some of you guys may love running. Some of you thought of running may absolutely make you want to throw up. Okay, so I don't know. It just makes you want to throw up. So I don't know. Some of you guys may like lifting weights, some of you guys may just want to go for a walk. Whenever you find that joy, it's going to look different for different people. Maybe it's swimming, maybe it's hiking, maybe it's rucking, whatever it may be. Lean into that, because when you're taking care of the vessel that he has given us, this temple that God has given us guys, it's so important just to find some joy in that. I know for me every workout, every workout it doesn't matter what workout I do there's this sense of joy when I'm finished that just can't be replaced in anything else. No matter what type of mood I'm in, if I hit the trail and go for a run, you can get those two laps in. That's a feeling of accomplishment. You know it's just a 5k, it's not very far, but it's a, it's a feeling of accomplishment and it's it makes you feel alive. You know your heart's beating, you're sweating, you're breathing hard and, guys, you can't for me, I can't replace that with anything of this world. There's not a drug out there that will or or With anything of this world. There's not a drug out there or vice out there that could even begin to offset that feeling. So, find that joy, lean into it and take it with intentionality. Okay, all right. So if you enjoyed this, guys share it with somebody else. Maybe share it with some fellow brothers in Christ. Maybe you guys want to start leaning into some of these sustainable items that Zach talked about.

Chris Grainger: 1:06:47

If you head over to thelinewithanus is where you'll find the links to this episode as well. It's also in the show notes. But the lionwithinus is where you have all our resources, all our devotions to join our community. Check if you want to be a better business leader, to make more ethical business decisions. That's wrapped around. The Bible for your, for your, guiding light. Check out our Summit Leadership Development. That's what it's all about, okay, so lots of ways to connect with us. Follow us on YouTube. We'll actually subscribe on YouTube. You can connect with us on Facebook, all the socials and things like that.

Chris Grainger: 1:07:14

We have all that stuff going out there for each and every day to support you, to encourage you. We have daily spiritual kickoffs within our community to just give you that little boost, that little boost that you need, monday through Friday. Well, guys, we got that going on. So we have lots of ways we try to serve guys. We have our live events, we have our mission trip, we have our Iron and Autumn event, we have our Never Retreat Men's event.

Chris Grainger: 1:07:34

So, guys, we have lots and lots and lots of ways for guys to connect, to enjoy just fellowship in Christ and to continue to grow, to be the disciples that he's called us to be. Remember, we're looking for lions, not house cats. So if you're ready to step in and be that lion, you know where to find us. All right, guys. Thank you so much for listening. Come back on Friday, good Lord willing, we'll be here with some tips, some ideas, some books, all this fun stuff that you need to go, that you need to keep growing. All right, so have a great day and keep on leashing the lion.